Have you ever taken your teenage daughter swim suit shopping and left completely happy? Two years ago, Raegan got a bikini with a little skirt on it. She was barely 12, but blossoming, and I decided last year to limit the options to tankinis or 1 piece suits, only. I just am not a fan of letting my then 13 year old daughter strutting around in a teeny tiny bikini.
After all, there is no in between at that age. She went from kids suits, which cover a lot more, to adult sizes, which cover... a LOT less.
Last week, I started to set dates & reservations for our Spring Break getaway. I'm taking the kids away over night for some fun, including a hotel with an indoor pool. Rae's suit from last year doesn't fit, because we squeezed her into a kids tankini, which she had mostly outgrown before summer was over. There was no getting around it- I had to shop in the junior's department this year.
Well, after browsing online, I conceded some points with her. She wanted a bikini. I wanted a suit of armor. We wound up coming to a mutual decision after I joked around- I asked her if she'd just like a set of boy's swim trunks, and a t-shirt. She loved the boys trunks idea. Oh, boy.
We went to Target tonight, and looked at what they had. There was a pair of black trunks with pirate skulls on them- she loved em. Tops were harder to come by, and she wound up choosing a bikini top. A rather too skimpy for me top, but it actually was more covering than the other one she tried on.
The top is black and white plaid with little metal studs on it. She loves it. I, on the other hand, nearly fainted when my almost 14 year old daughter came out of the dressing room wearing it, and looking like she has the body of a 16 year old. SO. SCARY.
I'd much prefer that suit of armor. In the mean time, I'm going to require t-shirts.
8 comments:
I agree with you about how hard it is to find modest clothing of any kind for our teenage daughters. I have a fifteen year old who wears tankinis and thankfully doesn't want to wear bikinis.
Oh then, you must go here! This is a site that has modest swimwear for girls. Found it while surfing last week {I'm not a spammer]
http://www.swimmodest.com/
Randi- I would LOVE to see that on her, but she would just not wear it. She's a teen who wants the skimpy bathing suits, so getting her into shorts is a moral victory. I'm planning to do some stitching on the bikini top, since it does have the sliding string, and sew it all into place, and maybe even stitch it so it won't need to be tied.
The shorts do sound like a cute option. I may have to suggest that to some of my friends who are going through the same dilemma--how to let your teen be somewhat covered while at the same time making sure they don't look like social outcasts. :)
It helped tremendously that Rae's friend did the same thing last year- all though, in her friends case, it's because she herself hates how skimpy bikini bottoms are. But, it made for a decent compromise this year. ;)
Went through this with the twins last year and after a couple hours of painful shopping I threatened to sent them swimsuit shopping with our dad. They actually went the tankini with cute little boy shorts that cover them up more than the one pieces they wore when younger.
Gilly was asking if she could wear a bikini this year- she still just uses Rae's hand me downs. I told her until her chest starts to develop, she's allowed to wear bikinis.
For now we haven't reached this stage in our home - my daughter is 5 and is thrilled if the swimsuit is simply pink or purple - the cut of the suit doesn't phase her at this point. But for myself, I have found that boy shorts and a bikini top are my choice for the past few years. I love wearing shorts as I feel free to chase my monkeys around, with no fear of anything unsightly emerging, and wearing the bikini top lets me feel like I'm still in swim wear. Congrats on finding a happy-medium with your girl!
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